Painting and sculpture

They became quite popular in the 16th century, and developed steadily at a high level in the 18th and 19th centuries. Given their artistic styles, printing and drawing techniques and materials, folk paintings could be classified into some different brands such as Dong Ho (Bac Ninh province), Hang Trong (Ha Noi) and Kim Hoang (Ha Tay province)…

Today, however, folk paintings are almost obsolete. Amongst the few existing brands of folk paintings under preservation, Dong Ho paintings still develop and can be found in many countries such as Japan, France and the US... Dong Ho is the name of a small village lying along the southern bank of Duong river, in Bac Ninh province. Dong Ho paintings are made in an original way, technically and aesthetically, in every aspect from pattern design, carving, paper production (dzo (poonah) paper is hand-made, coated with white powder made from baked shell), color mixture (made from natural materials) to picture drawing and printing.

Modern painting: The founding of The Fine Arts College of Indochina in 1924 marked a milestone in the development of contemporary plastic arts in Vietnam. The first generation of artists graduating from the Fine Arts College of Indochina and their works are now known in the world. Most prominent are “Hanoi’s Old Streets" by Bui Xuan Phai, “Game of Squares” by Nguyen Phan Chanh, “Little Thuy” by Tran Van Can, “Young Lady and the lilies” by To Ngoc Van, “On the bank of Restored Sword Lake” by Nguyen Gia Tri, and “See a student off to the exam” by To Ngoc Van. These paintings are invaluable masterpieces in Vietnam’s cultural treasury. In succession to the former generations, current artists, on one hand, pay regard to capturing the quintessence of the world art, and on the other hand explore new styles of Vietnamese paintings on oil, lacquer and silk… This generation of artists has become popular with their works particularly those by Luu Cong Nhan, Pham Cong Thanh, Nguyen Thu, Dang Xuan Hoa and Thanh Chuong, etc. that contribute to the enrichment of Vietnamese Contemporary fine arts.

Ancient sculpture: In the traditional artistic heritage, sculpture experienced continuous development and provided typical images of the Vietnamese in various parts of the country and at each period, whether in the form of deities or earthly human beings. The ancient Vietnamese sculpture was very diverse, but mostly in the following existence: Prehistoric sculpture with sculptured images on stones, in caves, on bronze drums and household utensils..; sculpture of Phu Nam and Chan Lap Kingdoms in the Southern part; Cham-pa sculpture in the Southern Central part; Great Vietnamese Sculpture in the Northern part and sepulchre sculpture by aborigines in the Central Highlands. Despite long time of warfare, many regions across Vietnam still manage to preserve a lot of villages’ common houses, pagodas and temples with a variety of Buddha statues and reliefs.

Copyright: Ministry of Foreign Affairs